NAM navigator – a resource to navigate information on the development, standardisation, validation and acceptance of non-animal models
Background
Over the last decades, many non-animal models have been developed. However, due to the lack of validation and acceptance of these methods, they are still underused. Validation is a complex process and much of the required information is difficult to find. To overcome this issue and thus to increase the use of New Approach Methodologies (NAMs), ZonMw in the Netherlands has launched the NAM Navigator. This knowledge base was developed by the team from the ‘More Knowledge with Fewer Animals’ programme of ZonMw, and was commissioned by the Dutch Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, Food Security and Nature. Information was gathered and structured by experts from the National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM), Medicines Evaluation Board (CBG-MEB) and the Erasmus Medical Centre.
NAM Navigator
The NAM Navigator is a knowledge base that contains links to important guidelines and articles for each stage of the process from research and development, to standardisation, validation and finally to acceptance of NAMs. Relevant news and events are shared as well as an overview of organisations, information initiatives and stakeholders that are relevant in the validation process. It was developed to make information on the validation process of NAMs for legal frameworks and regulatory guidelines more easily accessible for all involved stakeholders.
Target audience
The NAM Navigator was developed for researchers who want to develop a NAM and who are looking for information on how to proceed and take it further towards regulatory acceptance. It also targets researchers from academia or industry who have already developed a NAM and want to know how to validate it and assess the next steps towards regulatory acceptance. The NAM Navigator is easy to use, even for users with little knowledge about validation processes and provides practical experiences from other scientists (see 'In practice' section).
Your contribution
Thanks to the contributions of the different experts in the field, the platform now offers free information on the validation process of NAMs to a wide audience. However, any additional feedback is welcome to complete the information on the NAM Navigator and to keep it up-to-date. Provide your comments via the contact form: https://namnavigator.eu/contact/.
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